DayZ Admin Commands: BattlEye RCon and Admin Tools

DayZ has no native in-game admin command system — there is no /op, no F1 console, and no admin chat commands in the base game. Administration happens through three real routes: BattlEye RCon, the server config and mission files, and an admin mod. This guide covers all three, with the full command set for each.

Most "DayZ admin command" lists are actually Arma commands

Lists containing #login, #kick, #shutdown, #lock, #init or #exec ban are copied from Bohemia's Multiplayer Server Commands page, which documents the Arma engine. DayZ runs on Enfusion and has no in-game chat command line. None of those work here — see section 4.

1. The Three Real Admin Routes

Nearly every server runs all three. RCon handles moderation, the config handles rules, and the mod handles day-to-day in-game work.

2. BattlEye RCon — Setup

BattlEye ships with DayZ and runs as its own process alongside the server. RCon is BattlEye's own remote console and listens on a separate port from the game.

Configuration lives in BEServer_x64.cfg, which must sit in the same folder as BEServer_x64.dll — controlled by the -bePath and -profiles launch parameters. On Linux the file is lowercase: beserver_x64.cfg.

RConPassword ChangeThisPassword
RConPort 2306
RestrictRCon 1

Any command in section 3 can also be placed in BEServer_x64.cfg to run automatically on server launch.

The RCon port must not be publicly reachable without a strong password

RCon authentication is a single plaintext password over UDP. Pick a long random one, never reuse your server password, and firewall the RCon port to your own IP or your RCon tool's host wherever you can.

On the GSK panel

You do not need to hand-edit BEServer_x64.cfg or run a separate RCon client for routine moderation. The Console tab of your DayZ hosting plan is already connected, so players, kick, ban and say work straight from the browser.

3. BattlEye RCon Command Reference

This is the complete published command set. There are no others — BattlEye's documentation lists exactly these.

players
kick 4 Combat logging
addBan 76561198000000000 0 Duping
ban 7 1440 Toxic in chat
writeBans

ban takes the player number, not the Steam ID

ban operates on the player # from the players output, and that number changes every time someone reconnects. To ban by identity — or to ban someone who has already left — use addBan with their GUID or IP instead.

Note that a BE GUID is not a Steam64 ID. BattlEye issues its own GUID, derived from the Steam ID but not equal to it: players shows the GUID and addBan expects it, while priority.txt and the admin mods below want the 17-digit Steam64 ID.

There are also two client-side BattlEye commands, typed by a player in chat as #beclient <command>:

Third-party tools that speak the RCon protocol — BEC and DaRT are the two Bohemia names in the DayZ server documentation — wrap these same commands and add scheduling, chat logging and auto-kick rules on top. They do not add new engine commands.

4. Why #kick and #shutdown Do Not Work

Arma servers expose an in-game admin console: log in with #login <password>, then type #kick, #shutdown, #lock, #unlock, #init, #restart, #reassign, #mission, #exec ban, #userlist or the #vote family into chat. Those are Arma Multiplayer Server Commands, belonging to the Real Virtuality engine.

DayZ Standalone is built on Enfusion. It has no chat command line, and Bohemia's DayZ server documentation defines no # command set. serverDZ.cfg still carries passwordAdmin — documented only as "Password to become a server admin" — but no in-game console ships that consumes it. Set it if you like; do not expect an admin menu.

The practical replacements:

5. Config-Driven Administration

Everything that is a rule rather than an action belongs in serverDZ.cfg. The file has no fixed name; -config= on the command line decides it.

password = "";                  // set to lock the server
passwordAdmin = "";             // see section 4
enableWhitelist = 0;            // 0-1
disableBanlist = false;         // false = ban.txt is used
disablePrioritylist = false;    // false = priority.txt is used
motd[] = { "Rules: no duping", "Discord: example.gg" };
motdInterval = 1;
verifySignatures = 2;           // only 2 is supported
forceSameBuild = 1;
speedhackDetection = 1;         // 1 strict … 10 benevolent
MaxPing = 300;                  // kick above this ping, in ms

Priority queue — put Steam64 IDs separated by semicolons into priority.txt in the server install root, e.g. 01234567890123456;01234567890123456. Those players jump the login queue.

Relevant launch parameters:

allowFilePatching = 1 on a public server is an open door

It permits clients that launched with -filePatching, which loads unpacked, unsigned data. Combined with verifySignatures anything below 2, it is the single most common misconfiguration behind "how did they spawn that".

6. Scheduled Restarts and Graceful Shutdown

There is no #shutdown. DayZ shuts itself down on a countdown defined in messages.xml, at mpmissions/<yourmission>/db/messages.xml — you may need to create it. Set both deadline and shutdown to get automatic termination.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="yes"?>
<messages>
    <message>
        <delay>0</delay>
        <repeat>0</repeat>
        <deadline>600</deadline>
        <onConnect>0</onConnect>
        <shutdown>1</shutdown>
        <text>Hello, #name will shutdown in #tmin minutes.</text>
    </message>
</messages>

Every time value is in minutes. Messages cap at 160 characters and accept three placeholders: #name, #port and #tmin (minutes remaining, countdown only). With deadline set, warnings fire at 90, 60, 45, 30, 20, 15, 10, 5, 2 and 1 minute out.

Never kill a DayZ server process to restart it

Bohemia explicitly recommends the countdown shutdown. Terminating the process instead risks damage to player characters and the persistence storage. Point your restart automation at messages.xml, not at kill.

7. Admin Logging

These live in serverDZ.cfg and need -doLogs and -adminLog on the command line.

8. CommunityOnlineTools

COT is the GUI admin mod with the finer-grained permission model. It requires Community Framework (@CF).

Modules: Player, Camera (freecam), ESP, Map, Map Editor, Object, Teleport, Loadout, Vehicles, Weather, Item Stats, Webhooks, plus a Namalsk module. Other mods — DayZ Expansion among them — plug their own menus into it.

Permissions live under -profiles:

Role files are one permission node per line, dot-separated, followed by a level:

COT 2
COT.View 2
Admin.Player.Teleport 2
Admin.Player.Godmode 1
ESP.View.Player 2
Object.Delete 1

Because nodes are hierarchical, granting Admin.Player 2 grants everything beneath it unless a child is set to 1. That is how you build a moderator role that can teleport and heal but cannot spawn.

Default keybinds (all rebindable under Controls → COT):

9. VPPAdminTools

VPP is the other mainstream option. It also requires @CF, and unlike COT it ships a set of chat commands in addition to the GUI.

Install by copying @CF and @VPPAdminTools into the server root, copying both Keys folders into the server's Keys folder, and launching with -mod=@CF;@VPPAdminTools -profiles=NameOfFolder. Config files generate on first startup.

Add your Steam64 ID, one per line, to <profiles>\VPPAdminTools\Permissions\SuperAdmins\SuperAdmins.txt. Set the menu password in Permissions\credentials.txt, or skip it entirely by adding vppDisablePassword = 1; to serverDZ.cfg. Non-superadmin roles are defined in Permissions\UserGroups\UserGroups.vpp, using node names such as PlayerManager:BanPlayer, ServerManager:RestartServer, ServerManager:LockServer, ServerManager:KickAllPlayers and EspToolsMenu:PlayerESP.

Chat commands. Typed into normal in-game chat. Multiple targets or arguments are separated by commas, and self targets you.

Every one is permission-gated (Chat:HealPlayer, Chat:GotoPlayer and so on) and written to the admin log and any configured Discord webhook. Note there is no /ban chat command — banning is done from the Player Manager menu or via RCon.

GUI menus: Player Manager, Bans Manager, Server Manager, Item Manager, Object Manager, Teleport Manager, Weather Manager, ESP Tools, Spectate, Stats HUD, Permission Manager, Web Hooks, XML Editor and a commands console.

Banning through a mod is not the same as banning through BattlEye

Mod bans are enforced by the mod, stored in its own list, and stop working the moment the mod fails to load or is removed. BattlEye bans are enforced before the player ever reaches the game. For anything serious — cheating, duping — ban through RCon, then optionally mirror it in the mod.

10. Choosing Between COT and VPP

Both need @CF, and you should run one, not both — they overlap heavily and hook the same player and object systems. COT gives you hierarchical, file-defined permission nodes and is the one other mods extend, DayZ Expansion included. VPP gives you chat commands and an in-game permission editor, which is easier if you would rather not edit text files over SFTP.

11. FAQ

Does DayZ have admin commands?

Not natively. DayZ Standalone has no in-game console and no built-in command set. Moderation commands come from BattlEye RCon, which runs outside the game; gameplay commands like teleport or spawn only exist if you install an admin mod.

How do I ban someone on a DayZ server?

Connect via BattlEye RCon, run players to get the player number, then ban <player #> <minutes> <reason> — 0 minutes is permanent. If the player has already disconnected, use addBan <GUID or IP> <minutes> <reason> instead. Follow with writeBans to keep the on-disk list current.

Why doesn't #login work on my DayZ server?

#login and the rest of the # commands belong to Arma's engine, not DayZ's. DayZ runs on Enfusion and has no in-game admin console, so there is nothing to log into. Any guide showing #kick or #shutdown for DayZ was copied from Arma documentation.

How do I restart my DayZ server on a schedule?

Edit mpmissions/<yourmission>/db/messages.xml and add a message with deadline set to the minutes until restart and shutdown set to 1. The server warns players on a countdown, then terminates cleanly. Bohemia recommends this over killing the process, which can damage characters and persistence.

Do I lose my bans when the server restarts?

Only if they were never written to disk. BattlEye reads bans.txt automatically on launch via loadBans. Run writeBans after a batch of ban changes to flush the in-memory list to that file and clear expired entries.

Which admin mod should I install?

Either works. Pick CommunityOnlineTools for fine-grained, file-defined roles, or if you run DayZ Expansion — it plugs its own menus into COT. Pick VPPAdminTools if you want in-game chat commands and an in-game permission editor. Both need Community Framework (@CF); run only one.

12. What to Read Next

• Getting started with your DayZ server
• Configuring your DayZ server — the full serverDZ.cfg walkthrough
• How to Install Mods on a DayZ Server: Folders and Keys — installing @CF and an admin mod

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